our work
Working to Improve Neighborhoods & Lives
The URA is involved in hundreds of projects throughout the City of Pittsburgh. Our projects are diverse and have all been completed with input from community development organizations throughout the city. Through URA loans, strategic partnerships and other economic development initiatives, the URA is committed to supporting the next generation of creators, thinkers, innovators and inventors that are transforming our community.
J KoKo Hauling Sustains Business with URA Emergency Loan
“The URA was a ‘business saver’ for me. I needed that ELF cushion to get through that shut down period. I was so relieved when the deposit was made. The support from the URA has been amazing."
Chicken Latino gets back on its feet with help from a URA COVID-19 Small Business Emergency Loan
“It is such an opportunity to have a business and if it wasn’t for the URA I wouldn’t have been able to open the restaurant."
Celestin Uwintonze Improved Credit and Bought a Home with the Help of HOF
“I was very conscious of the long-term costs and knew I didn’t want to buy a house that would create too large of a financial burden for me and my family. I balance my budget every month, I do one project at a time, and am careful and thoughtful with my money. The HOF helped me buy a house we love that was within our means.”
Home Rehab Helps Resident Stay in Her Home
"I decided I was going to try to stay here as long as I could and get everything I needed in the house to live in it. Jarmele couldn’t help me enough, and she reassured that I had everything organized,” said Squirrel Hill resident Elizabeth Ganley.
LandCare Participant Builds His Own Business
“Working in the neighborhood in which I was born and raised is amazing. I feel that I am giving back to a community that has given me so much,” said Jamar Cox, owner of Nature’s Grooming.
Cilantro & Ajo Purchases New Food Truck
“Believe in what you’re doing. I believe in the Venezuelan food and that’s why we opened this restaurant…With the new food truck, people are beginning to take notice” said Marlyn Parra.
Morningside Crossing
The Morningside Crossing development is an adaptive reuse of the former Morningside School building plus a new addition into 46 units of mixed-income senior housing, a new community center and a public plaza.
Krause Commons
Krause Commons is a new, affordable rental building in the neighborhood of Squirrel Hill. Opened in December 2018, Krause Commons consists of 33 affordable units, 17 of which have a preference for residents with intellectual and/or mental health disabilities.
Lawrenceville Community Land Trust
The first phase of the Lawrenceville Community Land Trust consists of the new construction of six for-sale homes and the rehabilitation of one for-sale home in Upper Lawrenceville. The homes will be permanently affordable to households that are less than 80 percent of the Area Median Income (AMI).
Larimer / East Liberty Choice Neighborhoods Initiative
The Larimer / East Liberty Choice Neighborhoods Initiative is a $30M award from U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) to revitalize the Larimer/East Liberty Neighborhood. Revitalization includes 334 new housing units and neighborhood park.
SouthSide Works
SouthSide Works is a 123-acre riverfront brownfield redevelopment situated along the Monongahela River on the former site of a closed steel mill. Located in Pittsburgh's South Side, this mixed-use project includes residential and commercial space, a marina, riverfront park and 5 miles of new multi-use trails.
Brownfield Projects
The URA's redevelopment of former industrial sites, or brownfield sites, has been a critical component of Pittsburgh’s transformation.
Smallman St. & Produce Terminal
The Smallman St. and Produce Terminal projects pay homage to the area’s past as the central hub for the region’s wholesale produce while bringing new life to this iconic part of the Strip District. These projects are anticipated to make the Smallman Street corridor (between 16th and 21st Streets) a safer, more engaging destination and add 160,000 square feet of mixed-use commercial and retail space, including 40,000 square feet for local and regional businesses and a "food centric" marketplace.
Centre Avenue
The Centre Avenue Corridor project will lay the foundation for the transformation of 170 vacant or idle properties into multiple commercial, residential and office spaces over the next several years.
Riviera
The Riviera is an upcoming six-story, Class A office building at the Pittsburgh Technology Center. Developed by Burns and Scalo Real Estate on speculation, this development will feature 160,200 rentable square feet of office space as well as a full-service coffee bar and café, fitness center, riverfront patio, and bike storage.
Lower Hill
The 28-acre Lower Hill redevelopment will have a significant impact on the Hill District and entire Pittsburgh region. Part of this redevelopment involves transitioning land currently used as surface parking into a mix of office, retail, and housing, including the creation of a shared parking district.
Avenues of Hope
A holistic model for rebuilding Pittsburgh's Black Main Streets
Penn Circle Two Way Conversion
The final phases of the Penn Circle Two Way Conversion will reconnect two abandoned streets (Harvard and Beatty), return two-way vehicular traffic to Euclid Avenue and Station Street, improve crosswalks to make pedestrian movement safer, and install 8,000 linear feet of new protected bike lanes.
Penn Mathilda Apartments
Penn Mathilda Apartments is a newly constructed mixed-use affordable housing building for veterans and families. The ground floor has 6,200 square feet of commercial space and the upper floors house 39 apartment units.
Piatt Place
Piatt Place is a mixed-use development in Downtown Pittsburgh that spearheaded the Fifth and Forbes redevelopment corridor. It includes street-level retail, restaurants and Class A office space.
Pittsburgh Playhouse
Relocation of the Pittsburgh Playhouse in downtown Pittsburgh. The Pittsburgh Playhouse is Point Park University’s performing arts center and is home to The REP and three student companies.